Teaching, Methodology, Pedagogy, Curriculum Development, and Educational Technology(click on the downward arrows “” to expand)back to top

Laura Ewing

Carolyne Creel

Pedagogy Training (UT Global)

An intensive week long training workshop focused on pedagogy related to teaching and learning. These workshops are designed to improve theoretical and practical understanding of pedagogical principles and to give participants practice in designing innovative curriculum. Other topics include recognition of varied learning styles and strategies for addressing them, student-centered and active learning methods, assessment strategies, teaching effectively without technology, and curriculum design. These workshops will address program objectives including skills development in pedagogy, curriculum, and course development.

Speaker Biography: Carolyne Creel

Carolyne Creel was the Acting Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Professional Development in the Fort Worth Independent School District before retiring. During her career she served as a teacher, administrator, and curricula developer. Creel holds a bachelor of arts degree, a master of education degrees in adult and continuing education and mid-management certification. She has conducted workshops for UTGI both in Texas and around the world.

Speaker Biography: Laura Ewing

Laura Ewing is president of the Texas Council on Economic Education (TCEE). Ewing has served as an adjunct professor at University of Houston – Clear Lake, teaching courses on curricular methodology. She has provided hundreds of workshops on content, teaching strategies, and methodology to teachers, parents, and university professors around the world. Ewing has a bachelor’s degree in secondary social studies education and a master’s degree in educational leadership.

Christian Glakas

Data Analysis for Academic Instruction (The University of Texas at Austin)

This workshop introduces concepts of descriptive and inferential statistics. Participants develop proficiency in MS Excel and the STATA statistical package by examining educational data sets and utilizing various statistical methods for analytical, descriptive, and predictive purposes. The goal of the class is to show participants how to perform data analysis and understand the fundamental concepts of descriptive and inferential statistics, while providing participants with tangible software proficiency that they could apply in an academic setting, data analysis for class placement, and program evaluation.

This experiential workshop provides an introduction to Team-Based Learning (TBL), an educational strategy that emphasizes small-group, active-learning where most classroom time is devoted to group problem-solving with basic knowledge acquisition occurring individually outside the classroom. TBL helps students develop a more thorough understanding of the material and a greater appreciation of the value of working in groups to solve challenging problems.

Speaker Biography: Dr. Stephanie Holmsten

Dr. Stephanie Holmsten serves as lecturer in the International Relations and Global Studies (IRG) program. Her research focuses on the election of women and ethnic minorities around the world and explores whether institutions that promote the election of ethnic minorities increase or dampen the election of women. Her work with Rob Moser on the election of women to ethnic parties is published in Comparative Political Studies.Her teaching interests include international relations, international political economy and culture. She is also interested in democratization, gender and politics, race and ethnicity, and electoral institutions.

Before graduate school, she worked for six years at Bread for the World in Washington, DC, where she traveled throughout the country working with college students and faculty members to support political advocacy initiatives.

Siobhan McCusker

Blanton Museum Faculty Collaborations and Curriculum Connections for University Audiences (The University of Texas at Austin)

Visiting faculty from astronomy, classics, English, geography, history, Latin American studies, mathematics, medicine, music, pharmacy, political science, religion, social work, Spanish and Portuguese, and numerous other departments regularly use the Blanton Museum of Art as an extension of the classroom. Educators design activities that encourage student engagement with works of art. Typically the facilitated dialogue stems from the students’ own thoughts and observations and goes on to explore connections to ideas discussed in class.

The gallery-visit, designed for the Fulbright Lebanese scholars, made use of two special exhibitions:

Xu Bing: Book from the Sky, an iconic and monumental installation on view in its full, intended scale for the first time in Texas by celebrated Chinese artist Xu Bing (b. 1955). Regarded as one of the masterpieces of twentieth-century Chinese art and winner of the prestigious MacArthur Foundation “Genius” Award, the work transforms 1,500 square feet of the museum’s galleries.

In Xu Bing, the visiting scholars were paired up, standing back-to-back. The scholar facing the installation was tasked with describing the work of art to their partner. For this group, three languages were spoken (English, French, and Arabic) as part of the verbal description of Book from The Sky. This was relevant to the content of the work. The installation looks like pages and pages of Chinese characters, unreadable to a Western audience. However, the artist actually carved 4,000 characters that he invented, to look like Chinese writing. The end result is an installation that no one can read, not even the artist. The conversation focused on the connection between language, knowledge, and culture.

In Goya: Mad Reason, the activity directed the visiting faculty, working in pairs, to find an artwork that responded to their joint research interests. The activity provided an opportunity for the visiting faculty members to find common ground and to engage with artwork from a personal perspective.

Speaker Biography: Siobhan McCusker

Siobhan McCusker is the museum educator for university audiences. Her primary role is to custom design gallery experiences that have curricular connections with classes across campus.

Dr. James Pennebaker

Project 2021 and Technology as an Educational Tool (The University of Texas at Austin)

Project 2021 was launched on January 19, 2016 by President Gregory L. Fenves in order to better meet the educational needs of undergraduates in the 21st century. In the last two decades, we have witnessed a shift in the landscape of higher education. Profound changes in technology have changed the ways today’s students and faculty study, connect with colleagues and friends, write papers, conduct research, and learn. When our students graduate, they are moving into careers that have been shaped by many of the same technological forces.

Although the technology has changed, we still expect our students to be flexible and innovative thinkers, to know how to collaborate with others, to write and communicate effectively, and to be upstanding citizens and leaders who will change the world.

Speaker Biography: Dr. James Pennebaker

James W. Pennebaker is the Regents Centennial Professor of Liberal Arts and Executive Director of Project 2021. He and his students are exploring natural language use, group dynamics, and personality in educational and other real world settings. His earlier work on expressive writing found that physical health and work performance can improve by simple writing and/or talking exercises. His cross-disciplinary research is related to linguistics, clinical and cognitive psychology, communications, medicine, and computer science. His current position with Project 2021 involves rethinking undergraduate education at The University of Texas. Author or editor of 9 books and over 250 articles, Pennebaker has received numerous awards and honors.

Tina Melcher

Eric Bowles

UTeach Liberal Arts (The University of Texas at Austin)

UTeach-Liberal Arts prepares prospective teachers for the rigors of today’s diverse classrooms. In keeping with the liberal arts tradition, critical reflection plays a central role in this program. In three comprehensive stages before, during, and after student teaching, this program links extensive content-area preparation and integrated university courses on teaching, with guided experience in public school classrooms. This process is supported by a solid grounding in learning theories and a broad understanding of community resources available to new teachers.

The Faculty Innovation Center (FIC) is the new model of what many have known as the Center for Teaching and Learning or as Learning Sciences. The FIC collaborate with instructors and academic units to create and enable transformative learning experiences. They provide the insights, models, and resources to help instructors bring the best ideas to life. Through effective pedagogical practices, learning design, emerging technologies, digital tools, and data-driven assessment, evaluation, and learning analytics, the FIC helps instructors achieve their teaching goals so that they can help their students achieve their learning goals.

Speaker Biography: Dr. Anne Braseby

After teaching for 25 years, Anne joined the staff of the Center for Teaching and Learning (now the Faculty Innovation Center) as a Faculty Development Specialist, working specifically with faculty to develop collaborative learning both inside and outside the classroom. She facilitates Faculty Learning Communities across the university campus that provide a rich and rewarding forum for faculty to learn with and from their peers. She develops and presents faculty workshops on many topics from designing student led outcomes to student engagement in the classroom. She obtained her Master’s degree from Boulder Colorado and her Ph.D. from Florida International University in Miami Florida.

Speaker Biography: Dr. Mike Wallace

As a consultant, Mike serves as a catalyst who brings ideas and people together to help faculty innovate in their courses. Mike’s primary professional interest is in hybrid/blended learning where active learning, collaboration, technology, and self-regulated learning create opportunities for students to deepen their understanding. As a faculty member in science education at Morehead State University, he transformed his own courses into an inquiry-based physcial science course for elementary teachers, science methods for elementary teachers, a freshmen-level physical science course, and leadership courses. Mike earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering, M.S. in Physics, and a Ph.D. in Science Education from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Speaker Biography: Matt Russell

Blended & Digital Pedagogy Design Specialist

Leadership in Education, U.S. Higher Education, and Educational Administration(click on the downward arrows “” to expand)back to top

Structure of U.S. Higher Education (The University of Texas at Austin)

A brief overview of the structure of higher education in the United States, from how secondary education funnels into postsecondary education and avenues in academia available to those with an undergraduate degree. This seminar also covers the structure of The University of Texas System as a whole as well as The University of Texas at Austin in particular. Comparisons to the organization of other regional universities and the funding of higher education is also addressed.

Reforming the Education Environment at the Institutional Level (The University of Texas at Austin)

Why do most organizational change initiatives fail to reach their desired outcomes? This seminar introduces participants to a 6‐step process for planning and implementing change, identify strategies for helping others through the change process, and obtain hands-on practice in applying these tools.

Leadership in Educational Institutions (The University of Texas at Austin)

What makes an effective leader? Can these elements like attitudes and values be learned? This seminar addresses how two kinds of learning, transformative and informational, are relevant in leadership development in higher education.

College of Liberal Arts - Office of Research and Graduate Studies (The University of Texas at Austin)

The Office of Research and Graduate Studies provides support for faculty and graduate students seeking external research funding, steers College policies on graduate programs, and monitors the College work environment.

Instructor Bio: Dr. Esther Raizen

Esther Raizen was born in Israel and came to the US in 1982. She holds an M.A. in Jewish History from Tel Aviv University (1982) and a Ph.D. in Foreign Language Education from The University of Texas at Austin (1987). She has been invested in language pedagogy and technology-enhanced instruction since the early 1990s. At The University of Texas at Austin she has taught Modern and Classical Hebrew language courses and occasional Hebrew literature courses. Dr. Raizen has served as undergraduate and graduate advisor for the Center for Middle Eastern Studies and as Chair of the Department of Middle Eastern Studies from 2006 to 2010. She was Principal Investigator on a number of grants, among them the ROTC Language and Culture Project grant and the Flagship Zero to Two grant, both of which involve instruction in critical languages.

Dr. Art Markman

Effective Communication (The University of Texas at Austin)

Successful communication can make or break professional relationships. Participants will examine how effective communication skills can enhance taking initiative, creative problem solving, critical thinking, and analytical abilities, and why these are some of the most important competencies of in the worlds of business, government, higher education, and non-profits.

Speaker Biography: Dr. Art Markman

After getting a B.S. in Cognitive Science from Brown University in 1988, Dr. Art Markman went on to graduate school in the Psychology Department at the University of Illinois, where he got his PhD in 1992. Then, he spent five years as an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department at Columbia University. His research focuses on four main areas. He is interested in the way people see things to be similar, and how they process similarity and analogy comparisons. While the study of similarity is interesting for its own sake, it is also interesting because of what it can tell us about other psychological processes. In order to look at the way that our ability to make comparisons affects our cognitive processing, he also does research on category learning and decision making. He is also interested in the way that motivational factors affect learning, decision making, and cognition more generally.

He is the director of the program in the Human Dimensions of Organizations. This program aims to provide education in the humanities and the social and behavioral sciences to people in business, nonprofits, government, and the military. The aim is to teach leaders about how people, groups, and cultures influence the workplace.

Development

Fundraising for Higher Education (The University of Texas at Austin)

The College of Liberal Arts is home to highly ranked departments and some of the most respected faculty across the country. With Pulitzer Prize winners, Guggenheim, and MacArthur Fellows, members of the distinguished National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences among its ranks, the College of Liberal Arts is quickly becoming one of the best liberal arts colleges at a major research university. With nearly all its departments in the top 20 and a few in the top 10, the college is closing in on one of its goals of moving critical departments into the top tier nationally. The College of Liberal Arts has a bold vision — to become one of the premier liberal arts colleges in the country in the next 10 years. To reach such an ambitious goal the college must create and strengthen core academic programs and departments. The college is setting an aggressive campaign goal of $225 million to help ensure that its vision becomes a reality. Central to the campaign is the college’s strategy to strengthen the pillars of teaching and research. Campaign gifts will be directed toward constructing a new liberal arts building, creating and sustaining undergraduate programs, hiring and retaining the best faculty available, and enhancing graduate fellowship and research support. By effectively pursuing each of these goals, the College of Liberal Arts can become one of the best of its kind in the country.

Speaker Biography: Stacy Clark

Stacy Clark, Director for Development, College of Liberal Arts – Main Coordinator of Seminar

David Livingston, Executive Director for Development, University Development Office

Speaker Biography: Adrian Matthys

Adrian Matthys, Director of Annual Giving

Justin Michalka, Executive Director for Development, University Development Office

Speaker Biography: Andrew West

Andrew West, Director of Development and Communications, Butler School of Music

The University of Texas at Austin – Registrar

Shelby Stanfield

Vice Provost and University Registrar (The University of Texas at Austin)

The mission of the Office of the Registrar at The University of Texas at Austin is to create, maintain, certify, and protect University records of courses, degrees, and students. To meet that mission, we express below our vision and values, the key components of our work, our most recent progress — and the goals we’ve identified for the future.

UT Austin’s accreditation team led a discussion of American accreditation bodies, the process of gaining and keeping accreditation, and best practices for institutions.

Every ten years, The University of Texas at Austin undergoes reaffirmation of accreditation with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). As a private, not-for-profit, member-driven entity, SACSCOC assures education quality for more than 800 institutions across 11 states. The university was last accredited by SACSCOC in 2008 and will undergo its next reaffirmation in 2018. Accreditation provides a framework for The University of Texas at Austin to continue to improve in all facets, including governance, administration, faculty, educational programs, learning resources, student affairs, financial resources, and physical resources. With more than 90 SACSCOC quality standards to address, The University of Texas at Austin uses the accreditation process to explore institutional effectiveness and document that the university is accomplishing its mission. Accreditation signifies that an institution upholds:

A purpose appropriate to higher education

Resources, programs, and services sufficient to accomplish and sustain that purpose

Clearly specified educational objectives that are consistent with its mission and appropriate to the degrees it offers Success in achieving its stated objectives.

Speaker Biography: Dr. Linda Neavel Dickens

Linda Neavel Dickens is the Senior Director of Institutional Accreditation and Effectiveness and has worked for The University of Texas at Austin for more than 12 years in teaching, research, and administration appointments. Her experience in organizational learning and development spans 25 years from administering large-scale organizational evaluations, to leading team-based change management initiatives, to conducting comprehensive employee assessment and development programs. She has taught graduate courses in critical thinking, research methodologies, organizational change, and leadership. Her publications have focused on using action research and action science to generate individual learning and organizational renewal. Linda is a member of the Teagle Assessment Scholars’ Program.

Appointing board members to military reservation and special school districts

Providing final review of rules proposed by the State Board for Educator Certification

Reviewing the commissioner’s proposed award of new charter schools, with authority to veto a recommended applicant

The board is made up of SBOE members elected from single-member districts (outside source). The governor appoints one member to chair the board.

The University of Texas System

The University of Texas System (Austin, TX)

For more than 130 years, The University of Texas System has been committed to improving the lives of Texans and people all over the world through education, research and health care. The University of Texas System is one of the nation’s largest systems of higher education, with 14 institutions that educate more than 217,000 students. Each year, UT institutions award more than one-third of all undergraduate degrees in Texas and almost two-thirds of all health professional degrees. With about 20,000 faculty – including Nobel laureates – and more than 70,000 health care professionals, researchers student advisors and support staff, the UT System is one of the largest employers in the state.

The University of Texas at San Antonio

The University of Texas at San Antonio

The University of Texas at San Antonio is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge through research and discovery, teaching and learning, community engagement and public service. As an institution of access and excellence, UTSA embraces multicultural traditions and serves as a center for intellectual and creative resources as well as a catalyst for socioeconomic development and the commercialization of intellectual property – for Texas, the nation and the world.

Huston-Tillotson University

Huston–Tillotson University

Huston-Tillotson University is affiliated with The United Methodist Church, the United Church of Christ, and the United Negro College Fund (UNCF). HT, in Austin, is a coeducational college of liberal arts and sciences, operating jointly under the auspices of the American Missionary Association of the United Church of Christ, and the Board of Education of The United Methodist Church. Huston-Tillotson College officially changed its name to Huston-Tillotson University on February 28, 2005. Huston-Tillotson College was formed by the merger of Samuel Huston College and Tillotson College, which was effective on October 24, 1952. Huston-Tillotson College remained primarily a black college after the merger, although there were no restrictions as to race. Huston-Tillotson University awards undergraduates, four year degrees in business, education, the humanities, natural sciences, social sciences, science and technology. A multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, and multi-faith institution, the University welcomes students of all ages, races, and religions.

St. Edward’s University

St. Edward’s University

St. Edward’s is a private, liberal arts Catholic university in the Holy Cross Tradition with approximately 4,600 students. Located in Austin, Texas, with a network of partner universities around the world, St. Edward’s is a diverse community that offers undergraduate and graduate programs designed to inspire students with a global perspective. St. Edward’s University has been recognized for 14 consecutive years as one of “America’s Best Colleges” by U.S. News and World Report and ranks in the top 20 of Best Regional Universities in the Western Region. St. Edward’s has also been recognized by Forbes and the Center for College Affordability and Productivity.

Southwestern University

Southwestern University

For 175 years, Southwestern University has been engaging minds and transforming lives. Committed to “Fostering a liberal arts community whose values and actions encourage contributions toward the well-being of humanity,” Southwestern is unique in many ways. Our location in the heart of Central Texas allows our 1,528 students to enjoy the warm, small-town feel of historic Georgetown as well as the close proximity of Austin with its vibrant, innovative and creative culture. Southwestern’s residential campus offers a true liberal arts education with small classes and numerous collaborative undergraduate research opportunities. Outside the classroom, students are civically engaged and volunteer in the community at more than twice the national average! Half of all students study abroad and most take advantage of leadership, service and activism opportunities in Southwestern’s 90+ student organizations. Our scholar-athletes compete on one of 20 NCAA Division III varsity teams. Go Pirates! More than half of all Southwestern students complete at least one internship experience and 91 percent have found employment or have been accepted to graduate/professional school within 10 months of graduation. All of this (and more!) combine to create a lifelong Southwestern Experience.

Austin Community College

Austin Community College

Austin Community College is a nationally recognized two-year college serving Central Texas. ACC is focused on student success and providing affordable, flexible pathways to help students reach their education goals, learn new job skills, or advance their career.The college currently enrolls more than 43,000 credit students and serves an additional 15,000 students each year through noncredit programs.

Academic Support Structures, Research Methodology, and Grant Proposal Writing(click on the downward arrows “” to expand)back to top

College of Liberal Arts Advising

Othell Ballage Jr, M.Ed

College of Liberal Arts Academic Advising (The University of Texas at Austin)

Liberal Arts Student Affairs is dedicated to comprehensive and collaborative advising services and multifaceted programs designed to support a diverse student population by emphasizing the importance of advising in student success, goals for the advising process, and the challenges of student support in a large university setting.

Speaker Biography: Othell Ballage Jr

Othell Ballage Jr is the Academic Advising Coordinator for the Liberal Arts Dean’s Office/Student Division. He obtained a B.A. in English, at University of Colorado at Boulder and a Master’s in Education in Curriculum and Instruction atThe University of Texas at Austin. Ballage has been in the Student Division for more than 17 and a half years. And prior to that he worked in University of Texas Athletics for six years. Ballage leads the advising team of eight advisors in the Student Division.He eaned an award for outstanding service for academic supoort of the Longhorn men’s basketball team April 19, 1996. He earned the College of Liberal Arts Award for Oustanding Service by a Staff Member in 2003. And Ballage was awarded the College of Liberal Arts Advisor of the Year Award in 2012.

Library Facilities and Learning Commons

Library Facilities and Learning Commons (The University of Texas at Austin)

The University of Texas Libraries, as a research library of the first tier, advances teaching, learning and research excellence by providing expansive collections and innovative services to support critical inquiry and knowledge creation for the benefit of society.

UTeach Liberal Arts

Eric Bowles

College of Liberal Arts Academic Support Structures (The University of Texas at Austin)

Participants work with select faculty and grant specialists from the College of Liberal Arts to advance their understanding of academic research, writing, and publishing. Participants train in identifying funding opportunities, research design, project management including staff and budgets, and proposal and grant writing. Participants draft exercise proposals and budget documents related to their academic areas, as well as critique the work of others. Scholars develop skills for building research capacity.

Dr. Correa, Middle Eastern Studies Librarian, specializes in Islamic legal theory, theology, philosophy, and Qur’anic studies, with a particular interest in the intellectual tradition of the eastern regions of the Islamicate empire (namely, Transoxania, which is today in Uzbekistan/Tajikistan). Dr. Correa’s research, although rooted in the 10th-12th centuries CE, extends to contemporary conceptions of what it means to be Muslim, particularly in Eurasia. Her current book project examines the development and flourishing of the Transoxanian approach to testimony, or communication: that is, the transmission of knowledge of a past event by agents over time and space. This study brings together Qur’anic exegesis, Islamic legal theory, and Islamic theology with contemporary approaches to epistemology, philosophy of language and the mind, and logic to examine the consequences of positing epistemology as a confessional boundary.

Division of Diversity and Community Engagement (The University of Texas at Austin)

The Division of Diversity and Community Engagement advances socially just learning and working environments that foster a culture of excellence through diverse people, ideas, and perspectives. They engage in dynamic community-university partnerships designed to transform our lives. As a national model, they will strengthen the university’s academic and engagement mission by fostering a culture of excellence and social justice for the success of students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the community.
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Dr. Sherri L. Sanders, Associate Vice President for Inclusion and Equity; Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Educational Administration, College of Education. Sherri L. Sanders and her team advance efforts to create an inclusive culture at The University of Texas at Austin. In this role, she consults with faculty, staff, and departments to enhance knowledge of strategies that promote inclusion and equity. Dr. Sanders works with administrators to investigate and identify positive resolutions regarding university issues and concerns, including those related to equal opportunity. As the Title VI Coordinator, she administers and monitors Title VI activities and the overall nondiscrimination program. Dr. Sanders prepares University’s responses to eeo investigations initiated by governmental agencies and is a liaison to external eeo authorities. In addition, she oversees compliance with equal opportunity laws and policies and development of the University’s Affirmative Action Plan (AAP). She, along with staff, translate AAP data into effective tools to institutionalize best practices and to enhance their work with equity and diversity committees, especially in regards to diversity planning. Dr. Sanders also partners with the Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs and other academic leaders to create an environment where inclusive strategies for faculty recruitment and retention will succeed. Prior to 2007, she was a member of the Office of the Dean of Students senior leadership team for nineteen years and served both as assistant and associate dean of students. In 1998, she received her Ph.D. in educational administration from UT-Austin. Her research interests include diversity planning, gender equity, faculty recruitment and retention, and climate assessment. Dr. Sanders earned her M.A. in college student personnel from Bowling Green State University and a B.S. in psychology from Louisiana State University. Throughout her tenure, she has received numerous awards including the Parents’ Association Outstanding Student Affairs Staff Merit Award and the Margaret C. Berry Outstanding Contribution to Student Life Award. In 2004, she was honored as a participant in the Fulbright Scholar Program in Germany.

Speaker Biography: Dr. Aileen Bumphus

Dr. Aileen Bumphus is the Associate Vice President in the Longhorn Center for Academic Excellence within The Division of Diversity and Community Engagement (DDCE) at the University of Texas at Austin. She holds a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Research from the University of Southern Mississippi. Her academic area of study centered around Emotional Intelligence, Resiliency and Leadership.In her role, she oversees the programming and academic support components of the Center, which is designed to maximize the academic, personal and professional development of new first generation and underrepresented students at the University of Texas at Austin. Her other responsibilities in the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement include building collaborative partnerships across campus and within the community that support the educational pipeline within the Division. The Center provides programming and high touch services that are focused on student success along with designing and implementing new opportunities focused on student leadership, professional school preparation, studying abroad and building student wealth.Previously, Dr. Bumphus served as the Executive Director for the Gateway Program and through her efforts, this program has grown to be one of the largest and most successful student learning communities at UT. When Aileen arrived at UT, she was appointed as a doctoral fellow and served as program coordinator in the Pre-College Youth Development Program, also in the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement at The University of Texas at Austin. In this role, she worked with public schools around the state of Texas coordinating two of the partnerships between Texas high schools and the University of Texas at Austin. One program, ChemBridge, uses chemistry to bridge the gap between high school and college in order to prepare underrepresented students for success at postsecondary institutions via two semesters of dual-credit chemistry courses. The second program, SPURS (Students Partnering for Undergraduate Rhetoric Success), is a joint project between UT’s Department of Rhetoric and Writing (DRW) and the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement. It pairs lower division writing classes at UT with 11th grade AP English Language and Composition classes in Texas high schools. As a result, she was recognized by DDCE for her work as a postdoctoral fellow and received the Enrique Romo Staff Excellence Award and the Vice President’s Award for Staff Excellence.Dr. Bumphus has worked as a university instructor and graduate clinical supervisor in speech pathology at Murray State University in Kentucky. In that role, she taught courses in speech and hearing, supervised clinical practicum students, as well as public school student teachers in speech pathology. Additionally, she has served as a public school speech pathologist, special education team leader, language development teacher, and coordinator of personnel records. Most recently, she has served as an elementary school principal in the Plano Independent School District prior to completing her Ph.D. in educational leadership and research.Her certifications include a Lifetime Mid Management Certificate in the state of Texas for the principalship and a Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech Pathology (CCC-SLP). She also holds an MSCEIT Certification in Emotional Intelligence.She has been a finalist in the Howard County Public Schools’ Agnes Meyer Teacher of the Year Award, selected as Who’s Who Among School Administrators, and recognized for her work in promoting reading among the students in the East Baton Rouge Parish Public School System. She has served on such community service boards as The Plano Children’s Medical Clinic in Plano, Texas; The Family Service of Greater Baton Rouge; and The Capitol Area Family Violence Intervention Center for Battered Women in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. In addition she has served as a member of The Links, Inc., an international organization of accomplished, dedicated women who are active in their local communities.

Dr. Nestor Rodriguez

Dr. Rebecca Torres

Texas/Mexico Border Discussion

Faculty with experience conducting research in the field discuss issues facing the US/Texas-Mexico border, and the Lebanon-Syria border, with the scholars. Specifically: migration and citizenship, elections, geopolitics, and resource allotment, socio-political interactions, and human rights.

Speaker Biography: Dr. Nestor Rodriguez

Nestor Rodriguez, Professor in the Department of Sociology has conducted international research in Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador, and has traveled and lectured in China and Japan. His present research focuses on Guatemalan migration, U.S. deportations to Mexico and Central America, the unauthorized migration of unaccompanied minors, evolving relations between Latinos and African Americans/Asian Americans, and ethical and human rights issues of border enforcement.

Speaker Biography: Dr. Rebecca Torres

Dr. Torres received her Ph.D. from the University of California at Davis and is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography and the Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies. Her research focuses on rural/community development and poverty reduction, with special emphases on migration, agricultural transformation and tourism in the context of globalization. She has emerging interests in feminist geography, gender, and children’s geographies. Her work seeks to advance theoretically informed understandings of neoliberalism, rural restructuring and transnationalism as lived experience on the ground by migrants and their families.

Cultural and Community Engagement Activities(click on the downward arrows “” to expand)back to top

The University of Texas at Austin: Campus Tour

The University of Texas at Austin: Tower Tour

The University of Texas at Austin: Landmarks

Campus Tour (The University of Texas at Austin)

In November 1882, construction began on the original Main Building, and less than a year later, on Sept. 15, 1883, the university was opened with one building, six schools, a law department, eight professors, a proctor, and 221 students. Today, the university is home to about 52,000 students, 17 colleges and schools, more than 100 undergraduate and 170 graduate degree programs, and more than 3,000 faculty. The university’s main campus began on forty acres set aside on College Hill when Austin became the state capital. Today the main campus covers more than 350 acres, but many people refer to it as “the Forty Acres.” The purpose of this tour is to offer firsthand views of campus buildings, common areas, and art and architecture.

Tower Tour (The University of Texas at Austin)

The 307-foot tall University of Texas at AustinTower, designed by Paul Cret of Philadelphia, was completed in 1937. Through the years, the Tower has served as the University’s most distinguishing landmark and as a symbol of academic excellence and personal opportunity. The observation deck of the UT Tower offers a spectacular view of the UT Campus and the Austin area in all directions. Thanks to the cooperative effort of students, staff, and the University administration, the observation deck has recently been remodeled and reopened to the public for the first time in nearly three decades. This building has truly become the symbol which its esteemed designer intended, “the image carried in our memory when we think of the place.

Landmarks Tour (The University of Texas at Austin)

Works of public art have the capacity to resonate deeply, stimulate curiosity, and inspire the imagination in unexpected ways. At The University of Texas at Austin, the public art collection is one of the most distinguishing features of the main campus, shaping impressions and offering a distinctive setting for memorable experiences. As the university’s public art program, Landmarks enriches the lives of students and visitors by presenting art that is broadly accessible and free to all. More than thirty-five works of modern and contemporary art are on view throughout the 433-acre campus. The collection not only enhances the beauty of the landscape, but also supports scholarship and learning by demonstrating significant art historical trends from the past six decades. Landmarks projects are viewed by thousands of people every day. For many, the collection provides an introductory opportunity to engage with great works of art. Visit soon to discover why Landmarks is a point of pride for the university and all people of the State of Texas.

KUT’s Views and Brews

Rebecca McInroy

Views and Brews Podcast with KUT 90.5 FM’s Rebecca McInroy: Understanding Lebanon (The University of Texas at Austin)

In this episode of Views and Brews, KUT’s Rebecca McInroy is joined by four visiting Fulbright professors from Lebanon as well as Dr. Richard Flores, Senior Associate Dean For Academic Affairs in the College of Liberal Arts at The University of Texas at Austin, in a discussion about the rich history of a place once known as the “Switzerland of the East.” What can we learn from their complex political system? What is their relationship to their neighbors both to the East and to the South? And what makes this country a unique oasis in the middle east?

Speaker Biography: Rebecca McInroy

Rebecca McInroy contributes to a wide range of content for KUT 90.5 FM, KUTX 98.9 FM, and KUT.ORG. Rebecca believes it is important that Public Radio directly connects with the community it serves. Many of her programs combine the talent and knowledge of the Austin community with the production arm of KUT/X Radio to produce content that bridges the gaps that lie between the worlds of news and entertainment.

A Conversation with Faculty from Universities in Lebanon (GlobalAustin)

GlobalAustin is a leading community provider of a broad array of services for international visitors to Central Texas. Staffed by highly motivated, representative community leaders who share a firm commitment to fostering international fellowship and goodwill, GlobalAustin seeks to interact harmoniously with local institutions, public and private, that have established international links.

Speaker Biography: Dr. Karin Wilkins (The University of Texas at Austin)

Dr. Karin Wilkins (PhD, University of Pennsylvania) is a Professor of Media Studies, and Associate Dean for Faculty Advancement and Strategic Initiatives, Moody College of Communication at The University of Texas at Austin. She holds the John P. McGovern Regents Professorship in Health and Medical Science Communication, and is the incoming editor of Communication Theory. Wilkins has won numerous awards for her research, service and teaching. Her work addresses scholarship in the fields of development communication, global communication, and political engagement.

The Texas Tribune

Texas Tribune

The Texas Tribune is the only member-supported, digital-first, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues. The Tribune was founded in 2009 by John Thornton (a venture capitalist in Austin for nearly 20 years and passionate believer in public media), Evan Smith (the veteran editor-in-chief of Texas Monthly and host of a weekly interview program on PBS stations), and Ross Ramsey (the owner and editor of Texas Weekly, the state’s premier newsletter on politics and government). The Texas Tribune and its destination website were launched in November 2009, thanks to $4 million in private contributions as seed funding, a small band of talented computer programmers and some of the most accomplished journalists in the state. Now with a staff of more than 50 dedicated reporters, editors, technologists, designers and business leaders, the Tribune has continued to advance its mission of bringing greater transparency and accountability to public policy, politics and government through news, data and events.

State Capitol Tours

Texas State Capitol Tour and Women in Texas History Tour

The Texas Capitol anchors the four blocks that surveyors designated as Capitol Square in 1839. The first Capitol structure on this site was completed in 1853. The three story, limestone building measured 140 feet by 90 feet and cost approximately $150,000 to construct. In early 1881, officials held a nationwide competition for the design of a grand new Capitol and declared Detroit architect Elijah E. Myers the winner. The 1853 Capitol went up in flames in November of 1881, and a temporary Capitol was built across the street from Capitol Square to house state government during construction of the new building. The ground-breaking ceremony was held on February 1, 1882. Three years later, builders had finished the foundation and basement walls, and the 12,000-pound cornerstone was laid on March 2, 1885. Workers completed the second floor walls by the end of 1886, installed a copper roof in 1887 and placed the zinc Goddess of Liberty statue on top of the dome in February of 1888. Dedicated in May and formally accepted by the end of the year, the Capitol measured over 566 feet by 288 feet and cost more than $3.7 million to build. For over a century, the Sunset Red granite Capitol has stood as a symbol of the legendary spirit of Texas. It is the seat of government…the place where Texans meet to enact laws for the state. To ensure its survival for future generations, the 1990-95 Texas Capitol Preservation and Extension Project returned the building to its 1888-1915 appearance and updated vital systems.

Bat Watching Boat Tour By Capital Cruises

Bat Watching Sunset Boat Tour (Capital Cruises)

At a population of 1.5 million, the Anne W. Richards Congress Avenue Bridge is the home of the largest urban bat colony in the world. Austin’s bridge bats are Mexican free-tailed bats. They migrate each spring from central Mexico and return to Mexico in early Fall. These cruises provide viewing for their nightly sunset emergence to feed upon the agricultural pests.

Austin Animal Center

Austin Animal Center: Community Service Visit (Austin Animal Center)

Austin Animal Center, the largest municipal animal shelter in Central Texas, provides shelter to over 18,000 animals annually and services to Austin/Travis County. This facility accepts stray and owned animals regardless of age, health, species or breed. The goal is to place all adoptable animals in forever homes through adoptions, foster care or rescue partner groups. Animal Services has numerous programs and partnerships designed to help pets in the shelter, in the community and in the home.

Shakespeare at the Winedale

Shakespeare at Winedale: Much Ado About Nothing (Roundtop, TX)

Shakespeare at Winedale is a University of Texas program dedicated to bringing Shakespeare to life through performance. Founded by Professor James B. Ayres on the belief that the best way to study Shakespeare’s plays is to perform them, Shakespeare at Winedale offers a unique opportunity to explore these rich and complex texts through the creative act of play. Shakespeare at Winedale is a program of the Department of English in the College of Liberal Arts, but many of its activities are centered on the Winedale Historical Center near Round Top, Texas, where for more than thirty-five years students and audiences have come to encounter Shakespeare’s living art.Established in 1970 as a UT English course, Shakespeare at Winedale has grown into a year-round program reaching many different groups. Students in the summer program spend two months in the Texas countryside, studying and performing three plays in the converted nineteenth-century barn that is our theatre. A spring semester version of the course is offered on the UT campus, with performances at Winedale. Camp Shakespeare provides a two-week experience of learning and playing Shakespeare for 10-16 year-olds. Our Outreach program brings Shakespeare into the classrooms of elementary school students throughout central Texas, and brings those students to Winedale to perform. Our program also includes a medieval nativity play performed by children from the Winedale area, a summer course for teachers through the UTeach program, visits by British Shakespeareans to the Winedale theatre barn, and special performances in other venues, including an annual tour to England.

LBJ NHP is divided into 2 separate units. The Johnson City Unit, located in Johnson City, Texas, consists of the park headquarters and visitor center, Lyndon Johnson’s childhood home, and the Johnson Settlement containing his grandparents frontier log cabin. The LBJ Ranch Unit preserves President Johnson’s ranch. Within the ranch district are Lyndon Johnson’s birthplace, the Johnson family cemetery, and the Texas White House from which he ran the country for >25% of his presidency. The LBJ Ranch is still a working cattle ranch and LBJ NHP does preserve the LBJ bloodline in our Herefords.

Round Rock Express Baseball Game

Round Rock Express Baseball Game (Round Rock, TX)

The Round Rock Express are a class Triple-A Pacific Coast League minor league baseball team associated with the Texas Rangers. The organization continues to dedicate itself to promoting America’s national pastime in a safe, fun, friendly and exciting atmosphere that allows fans and players alike to enjoy the game.

Bullock Texas State History Museum

Bullock Texas State History Museum and National Parks Adventure 3D IMAX (movie)

Each summer for the past 26 years, KGSR hosts Blues on the Green at Zilker Park, the longest running free concert series in Austin, Texas.

Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum

LBJ Presidential Library (The University of Texas at Austin)

The Library houses forty-five million pages of historical documents which include the papers from the entire public career of Lyndon Baines Johnson and also from those of close associates. Special activities and exhibits are sponsored privately by the Friends of the LBJ Library and its parent organization, the LBJ Foundation. The Library is situated on a 30-acre site onThe University of Texas at Austin campus. The building is on a promontory-like plaza adjoining Sid Richardson Hall and the LBJ School of Public Affairs. The Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum is one of thirteen presidential libraries administered by the National Archives and Records Administration.

Connect with UTGI

UT Global Initiative

The Global Initiative for Education and Leadership (UTGI) is a program at The University of Texas at Austin that delivers high-quality educational training and consulting to governments, higher education institutions, schools, businesses, and nonprofits worldwide.